Review of Nothing But the Truth (2008) by Rudy C — 27 Feb 2011

Despite its superb performances (particularly from Beckinsale and Farmiga), Nothing but the Truth undermines its central feminist narrative with a disappointing conclusion. The film is loosely based on the "Plame Affair", wherein the identity of a covert CIA operative was revealed through the media, and I stress the word loosely here. Nothing but the Truth begins as a simplification of true events, but by the middle, it has completely deviated from its source material. I can't say I blame the filmmakers. The liberties they take with fact are essential to the story, which follows two of the toughest women in film through some of the worst possible circumstances.

Beckinsale, who is truly impressive in this film, plays Rachel Armstrong, a reporter for a Washington paper who writes the story exposing the CIA agent, whose child happens to attend the same school as Armstrong's son. Armstrong is young, smart, and eager, but her sweetness is belied by a tough-as-nails interior and a sincere belief that the law is on her side. Unfortunately, that's not the case here. When she names Veronica Van Dorn (Vera Farmiga, whose performance is intense and stunning) as a CIA operative, the law comes down upon her hard and fast demanding she name her source. Armstrong is resolute against their attempts to intimidate her, but her usually cool exterior is rattled when their threats become realities, and her life is gradually destroyed.

Van Dorn's suffering and decline is paralleled with Armstrong's. She's a woman who has carefully cultivated two private identities, one to fit into suburbia and the other to fit into the male-dominated CIA. Farmiga transitions deftly between Van Dorn the suburban mom and Van Dorn the CIA operative despite the clear contrast between the two. Farmiga can play breezy, polite, and charming next to violent, intense, and vulgar without missing a beat of seeming forced. She plays Van Dorn like a woman warrior both inside and outside of the agency, and hers is a sympathetic, likeable portrayal.

At its heart, the movie is about two women fighting for their rights to be strong, independent, and principled figures. Each have similar definitions of patriotism, diplomacy, and integrity, they're each fighting for the same thing, but their motives and organizations are so disparate it makes them seem like they're on different sides. Had Rob Lurie altered his ending and omitted that final scene, he might have seen his central thesis through to completion. Unfortunately, that's not the case here. Both Armstrong and Van Dorn's respective fates are undermined by those few closing minutes of the movie, closing minutes that weren't even necessary given the strength of this film's convictions, performances, direction, and editing.